A young woman described as ‘the life and soul of everything’ killed herself after being charged with drink driving.
Marina Watters, 26, feared she would lose her dream job and no longer be able to help her grandparents with shopping if she lost her licence, an inquest heard.
She was found dead just three days after being charged with being over the alcohol limit, when police were sent to her flat to check on her.
Her family had become concerned that she had not turned up for work and could not be contacted at her home in Toftwood, near Dereham in Norfolk.
David Howes, who assessed her mental health after he arrest, said: ‘She was just tearful, regretted her decisions, and said she had made a stupid mistake. She presented as remorseful.
‘She denied having any thoughts of suicide or self-harm.
‘She was just worried about not being able to drive for her job and visiting her grandparents to help them with their shopping.’
Miss Watters was said to have had had a talent for numbers from a young age, before fulfilling her ambition of becoming a fully qualified chartered accountant.
She was devoted to her family, including her nana and grandad, and liked playing pool and betting on the horses.
Her brother Michael ‘Mikey’ Watters, 30, said: ‘She was my everything, my rock, I’m deeply hurt, and I cannot imagine how I can move on in life without her.’
Michael, of Scarning, said his sister ‘would always put others before herself’.
‘She was one of those people who would not want to tell anyone anything that would cause them pain,’ he said.
‘She had been struggling to deal with a recent bereavement, and she took her own life.
‘If there’s anything to take away from this, it’s that we want people to know that it’s okay not to be okay.’
Miss Watters’ best friend of five years, Cherise Barnard, 23, said at the time of her death: ‘Marina was the life and soul of everything.
‘All she ever wanted to do was help others.’
Norfolk Coroner’s Court heard how police had seen Miss Watters ‘driving erratically’ behind the wheel of her Audi A1 in Dereham in the early hours of April 23 last year.
She failed a roadside breathalyser test and was charged after she was found to be twice the legal limit with 71mg of alcohol in 100ml of breath.
Miss Watters was released from Wymondham police station, and bailed to appear before Norwich magistrates court in May.
The inquest was told that a Safety Incident Review had been carried out following her death.
Norfolk Area Coroner Samantha Goward confirmed that the review flagged no areas of concern, and everything had been ‘in accordance with routine practice’ with the mental health assessment carried out as standard.
She recorded a narrative conclusion, saying that Marina Watters died ‘due to a deliberate hanging, but her thought process may have been impacted due to side effects of taking ketamine, so her intent is not known’.
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